


Of Books and Road Trips

by baeconandeggs, masaringo



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: BAE2017, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-24
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-04 14:27:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10992807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/masaringo/pseuds/masaringo
Summary: You would expect to get awkward, mortifying love confessions in many places. The third page of your favorite book isn’t one of them.





	Of Books and Road Trips

**Author's Note:**

> **Author:** Anonymous  
>  **Prompt#:** 300  
>  **Title:** Of Books and Road Trips  
>  **Word Count:** 15.5k  
>  **Rating:** PG-13  
>  **Disclaimer:** The celebrities' names/images are merely borrowed and do not represent who the celebrities are in real life. No offense is intended towards them, their families or friends. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this fictional work. No copyright infringement is intended.
> 
>  **Author's Note:** It’s been a pleasure to participate in this year’s event. Thanks to the prompter, for a wonderful idea. I hope I was able to make it justice. And to the mods, for being incredibly patient and all around great. Enjoy!

Baekhyun was ready. He'd been ready for a year, four months, three days and roughly five hours. He'd been super ready since that morning, while he was waiting in line for the downtown bookshop to open. He'd been more than super ready as he rode the bus back home, book clutched against his chest as he stubbornly refused to open it. Because in his hands he had his very own copy of Shadow Legends's new instalment, and he had a ritual for this, ok? So he'd gotten home, glad Jongdae was at his evening class (how could one go to class when Shadow Legends was being released? Baekhyun had no clue), made some Chamomile tea for himself and sat on his couch, placing Shadow Legends: The Prince of Darkness in front of him. Underneath the title, the well-known pen name Baekhyun had read many speculations about. PCY. Carefully, oh so carefully, he opened the book, turning the first of almost nine hundred pages. Taking a deep breath, he focused his eyes on the dedication page. That was new. PCY didn't do dedications.

_"To Byun Baekhyun. I've loved you since I first set eyes on you. I miss your dazzling eyes; the mole in the right corner of your mouth that I yearn to kiss; your velvety voice that's music to my ears; and most of all, you. I miss you."_

Baekhyun fell of his couch.

And then he scrambled up, and read it again. And again. He closed the book. And the opened it. And read it again.

Jongdae was right. He'd been acting crazy about the book for months, and now he'd finally lost his mind for real.

His tea was lukewarm at best when he reached for the cup, his hand trembling slightly. Even for an hallucination, everything seemed pretty real.

Except, you know, the fact that his favorite author in the world had apparently dedicated the latest installment of his book to... him. Baekhyun. Baekhyun, who overslept most days and forgot to feed himself regularly. Baekhyun, who would probably be living behind a dumpster if it weren't for Jongdae. Baekhyun, who definitely, definitely, _didn't_ know PCY.

But PCY knew him. And... loved him?

So, he was hallucinating, because that made more sense than what was supposed to be reality.

The front door rattled open. Baekhyun blinked.

"Hey," Jongdae nodded, taking his shoes off by the door, "Why are you sitting in the dark?"

He turned the overhead light on, and Baekhyun blinked again. He hadn't even realized the sun had set.

"So, have you started it yet? Is it as good as you were hoping?"

Baekhyun opened his mouth, unsure about how to tell his best friend that he was officially going crazy. He closed his mouth again.

Jongdae padded back from the kitchen with his own cup of tea. Right, the tea. Baekhyun took a sip of his own. Freezing.

"Please tell me you didn't finish it already. We talked about it last time Baek! How do you expect to enjoy-" Baekhyun shook his head, opening his mouth. "Hey are you okay? Your silence is kind of freaking me out."

Baekhyun coughed, "I haven't started it yet."

"What? Why, what's-?"

Baekhyun pushed the book towards him, almost ready to be told that he was crazy.

Jongdae tore his eyes from where he was studying him carefully, and looked down at the book.

"Baekhyun? Why is. Why are you? What?" he took a deep breath, wetting his lips, "Why is PCY's new book dedicated to you?"

"Oh well, at least you see it too. I thought I was hallucinating," his voice sounded far away, even to himself.

"You. You are definitely not hallucinating. But I think you might be in shock. I'll get you a drink."

The next thing he knew, a glass was being pushed into his hand. He drank it all at once, wincing when the strong liquor burnt his throat.

"Dae. What the fuck is going on?"

\---

Five hours after the official release from the book, and fourteen minutes since Jongdae had gotten home, they got the first call.

Jongdae, one ear pressed against his phone, walked out of his room, where he'd gone to change into his pajamas (because he "couldn't deal with this in jeans"), and into the living room.

"It's Kyungsoo. He says Jongin came home yelling that you weren't picking up your fucking phone. And that we need to turn on the TV. Right now."

 _'WHO IS BYUN BAEKHYUN?'_ was written in red bold letters across the first news channel they tuned into. On screen, footage of thousands of fans, clutching their books just like Baekhyun had been a couple of hours ago.

"Holy shit. Soo I'll call you back," Jongdae dropped to the couch besides him, just as Baekhyun jumped up.

The news lady, when Baekhyun tuned into her, was expounding on the shocking news of the mysterious dedicatory found in the latest installment of Shadow Legends, the best-selling saga of the century.

He was screwed.

\---

"Yeollie!"

No more than an hour after they'd turned on their TV, Baekhyun realized he needed to get out of the house before he got crazy. He grabbed his phone and his book, foregoing his jacket. Spring was in its full bloom, either way.

As usual, Chanyeol was behind the counter when he got to the shop, and only after he'd gone over the threshold did Baekhyun feel the knot that had taken over his chest loosen.

For almost a year now, the place had been like a second home to him. He could remember clearly the first time he'd stepped through its doors, half desperate because he'd gone to every big bookstore in search of Shadow Legends: The Secret of Light, special edition, and it was absolutely sold out everywhere. He’d been begging Jongdae to lend him some money to buy it, but he’d taken his time in doing so, and by the time he finally had the money finding the book was close to impossible. Baekhyun’d read the regular edition so much it was worn around the edges, knew it so well he could probably recite full chapters by heart. So, he absolutely needed the special edition.

Baekhyun hadn't held any sort of hope for the new cozy bookstore that had opened just a few blocks away from his school, but the smell of caffeine had drawn him in.

He'd told himself it wouldn't hurt to ask, pushing the door open just to see the most perfect guy he'd ever seen. Baekhyun didn't have a type, but, if he did, it'd look just like him. Chanyeol.

He didn't know his name was Chanyeol until later, though. That day, that gorgeous guy had looked him up and down before going into the back room, emerging with a brand new copy of Shadow Legends: The Secret of Light, special edition. Baekhyun was in love. And he may or may not have cried a little.

He'd gone back the following day, after breezing through the book and not shutting his eyes the whole night. He looked terrible, but in an uncharacteristic fit of modesty, he didn't care. He needed someone to talk about the book, and Jongdae had threatened to throw him out so many times that Baekhyun was afraid this'd finally make him snap. And then there was the guy. Baekhyun wouldn't say he was going just to see him again and maybe try to seduce him with his endless charm and wit, but maybe he was.

Chanyeol had been there again, had looked positively confused to see him again so soon. Baekhyun had taken a look around himself, regarding the petite bookshop, with bookshelves both perfectly kept and still brimming with books in every single corner, and the little cafeteria just besides Chanyeol's counter, with a bar with stools and not much more. Something clicked inside him, and he realized he was in a place that could make him very, very happy.

He'd dragged one of the stools to sit in front of Chanyeol's counter, and declared that he'd finished PCY's book and that he'd physically die if he didn't talk about it.

And, while Chanyeol had seemed reluctant, almost weary at first, it wasn't long until he was just as much into the discussion as Baekhyun.

They'd just agreed to disagree on the motives of the main villain when Baekhyun moaned, explaining that he'd promised his best friend he'd look for a summer job in order to return the money he'd borrowed from him to buy the book the day before.

Chanyeol's eyes had taken a considering look just then, straightening his shoulders after he seemed to have made a decision.

"Do you know how to make coffee?" he'd asked. Baekhyun didn't. But he was a fast learner. Besides, he was a college student. How hard could making coffee be?

He'd sent his resume to the email address Chanyeol had given him, hoping for maybe the first time ever that Mr. Park would disregard his utter lack of experience and hire him anyway. Something about seeing Chanyeol every day for months made him feel giddy.

He'd woken up the next morning with an acceptance in his inbox and instructions to discuss the details of his work hours and payment with Chanyeol. He'd waved away Jongdae's skepticisms at being hired without either an interview nor experience. Obviously, the photo on his resume had spoken for him.

And, just like that, Baekhyun had started to work there. And it had probably been the best summer of his life.

To be fair, the bookstore/coffee shop wasn't exactly the most popular venue around. They still had their fair share of patrons, and Baekhyun had had to learn how to make coffee (which, by the way, was _hard_ ), but they spent most of the day working alongside each other, talking of everything and nothing. Maybe flirting a little, if you squinted. Which, you totally should.

It got to a point where Baekhyun couldn't bear the thought of not being there anymore when school started. He'd actually miss Chanyeol when he was in class, which was weird and something Baekhyun didn't want to dig much into. So, he spent most of his evenings there, studying, and making himself and Chanyeol substandard coffee. Those were the best hours of his day.

And now there he was, Chanyeol's smile the only constant in the freak show that seemed to have replaced his life in the past day.

He flopped in the stool in front of Chanyeol's desk, almost officially his, and leaned against the cool glass of the counter, head hid between his arms.

"Hi," he mumbled.

"Hello you," Chanyeol patted his head.

"Hi Sehunnie," Baekhyun waved, not bothering to lift his head. Something resembling a greeting came from the boy propped against the other counter.

Sehun had been hired shortly after he'd had to go back to school. If Baekhyun had to be replaced by someone, ever, he was glad it was Sehun. He was nowhere nearly as charming and all around great as Baekhyun was, but he made a pretty damn great coffee. And, he had a boyfriend abroad whom he loved dearly. Not that Baekhyun cared.

"So," Chanyeol started, voice even more sprightly than usual, "have you read it?"

Baekhyun groaned, lifting his head to take the book out of his backpack.

"I did."

"So?" he pressed.

If Baekhyun had been paying attention, he would've realized Chanyeol sounded almost... nervous?

"So what? I don't even know what to think! I mean what the fuck? Who is this person? How do they know me? And I mean I know I'm irresistible but they seem to be in love with me? I mean what?" he babbled, getting progressively more anxious until Chanyeol was putting his hands on his shoulders and telling him to breathe.

Chanyeol waited until he'd taken a deep breath, rolling his eyes before speaking again.

"Are you telling me you have no idea who this person might be? At all?"

"I don't!" he whined.

Chanyeol seemed to be on the edge of telling him something, but Baekhyun was suddenly very tired.

"Sehunnie! Make me some coffee?"

If there was one thing Baekhyun absolutely didn't like about Sehun, was the fact that he had been immune to Baekhyun begging since day one. He'd usually refuse to make him anything until he either paid him or got Chanyeol to back him up, but this evening he seemed to sense that Baekhyun was feeling all sorts of weird, because he only took one look at Chanyeol, who mouthed a 'please' when he thought Baekhyun wasn't looking, before he turned to the coffee machine with a sigh.

They were silent as the machine beeped and churned into life, and then Sehun was placing two cups in front of them. Baekhyun's smelt like everything he'd ever wanted in life. Chanyeol's, like whiskey. Sehun was damn good with that machine.

It only took a couple of sips for Baekhyun to feel more like himself. It still didn't help him with his current situation, but at least it was something.

"So. Back to the whole 'your favorite author dedicated his last book to you and sort of confessed to you'," Chanyeol said, placing his own cup on the counter and fixing his eyes on Baekhyun, "Think. For real. There has to be someone who is like... really in love with you. And who thought confessing his feelings like that was a great idea. And is now maybe regretting it."

Baekhyun thought he heard Sehun mutter a 'smooth' under his breath, but disregarded it in favor of leaning over the counter to grab a pastry and chewing on it thoughtfully.

"Well... There was someone who proposed to me in third grade. But I think I would know if Jongdae was my favorite author ever. Or if he loved me, you know. I'm pretty observant when it comes to that sort of thing."

Chanyeol made a wounded noise, which got drowned when Sehun started coughing so bad his face got red.

"Are you okay? Maybe you should get some water."

Sehun only coughed harder.

"Yes Sehunnie, go get some water," Chanyeol told him through gritted teeth, which seemed to sober him up enough to sit and make himself a very sugar-loaded latte.

"Are you sure you're the Byun Baekhyun it's dedicated to? I mean, there have to be other Byun Baekhyun's in Korea, right?" Sehun was still smiling weirdly as he took a sip of his own coffee.

"That... actually makes sense. I haven't googled myself in ages, but if I don't know PCY at all, chances are that his book wasn't dedicated to me, just to someone with my name."

"But isn't that too much of a chance?" Chanyeol finally looked at him from where he was still sort of glaring at his coworker, "PCY himself, who you talk about _a lot_ , just happens to dedicate a book to someone with your name?"

"That makes sense too!" he whined. He didn't know what to think, and his head was pounding with the beginning of a migraine. "Anyway, I'll try not to think about it more than necessary. I'll go crazy otherwise," he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket when it began ringing.

"Speaking of the devil," he said, unlocking the phone, "Hi Dae... I'm with Yeol... Ok, I will. See you later."

He turned back to Chanyeol, who was staring at him with a weird look in his eyes, "Hey, do we have a TV around here?"

\----

The small TV overhead was still showing a series of tweets where Baekhyun poetically waxed about how much he loved PCY and how he wanted to get into his intellectual pants. Which was, honestly, so unfair.

Baekhyun had been drunk on lack of sleep and feelings when he'd written them. And it was one thing to think that a handful of his followers (and fellow fans) would read his ramblings, and another to have his thoughts posted like that for everyone to see. Which was... kind of the point of Twitter, now that he thought about it.

"Shit. I'm going to be famous!" he told Sehun, seeing as Yeol was still gaping at the TV, "That's one good thing to come out of this mess."

Sehun scoffed "Ten bucks says you get sick of it in a week."

Baekhyun hummed thoughtfully, looking down as another ‘follow’ notification lit up his phone, "Deal."

"Is this like... legal?" Chanyeol muttered, eyes wide and fixed on the TV, "Can they show your tweets like that and stuff?"

Baekhyun shrugged, "I'm not sure, but I'll call Soo later. Anyway, it is PCY's fault. They are the one who published my name just like that," he pointed.

Chanyeol finally turned to him, "I'm sure it wasn't... I mean I'm sure PCY didn't mean to cause you trouble they were just trying to-"

Sehun interrupted him a moment later, nudging Baekhyun's elbow with his own and nodding at the TV.

"Isn't that Jongdae?"

Baekhyun turned so fast he almost gave himself whiplash.

And up there in the screen was, in fact, Jongdae. Baekhyun only relaxed a fraction when he saw his best friend handling the reporters like the music agent he was supposed to be once he graduated. That small relief was soon wiped away when Chanyeol turned up the volume, and he could hear what Jongdae was saying. Which was, at the moment, a detailed description of how Baekhyun had reacted to the release of the book. Followed by him laughing for a full minute when a reporter asked him if he was dating Baekhyun.

"Oh god...." Baekhyun whined, picking up his bag and heading to the door, "I have to deal with this. See you two tomorrow."

Chanyeol waved him off, tearing his eyes away from the screen to attempt a smile at him.

"Sure you don't want to back off on that bet? Last chance," Sehun shouted after him.

"Sure. I'm famous! I'm never getting sick of this!"

\----

"I'm sick of this," Baekhyun whined two days later, handling Sehun his money.

"There there," the boy patted his hoodied head half-heartedly, "I'll make you some coffee."

Baekhyun turned back to Chanyeol once Sehun began working the coffee machine, and removed his sunglasses.

His delight at being somewhat famous had lasted till the first (and last) time he'd tried to go to class. Not only had one of the sneakiest reporters tried to follow him, but being in class was almost unbearable. Everyone seemed to be talking about him, and he realized it hadn't been his imagination when his professor had called him to his office hours after class and politely told him that his presence had been more of a nuisance than blessing, and that it would probably be better for everyone if Baekhyun studied at home until everything quieted down.

He hadn't been able to go to Yeol's either, and that had been the worst. Even Jongdae was beginning to get snappish at having to avoid reporters every time he got out of the house.

"I've been thinking a lot about this," Chanyeol told him, fixing what little hair showed from his makeshift disguise, "I think you should go away for a while."

Baekhyun sat up straight at that, "Are you kicking me out? Because I swear to god Yeol but you'll have to barricade the place to keep me away."

Sehun snorted while Chanyeol began to frantically move his hands.

"That's not what I meant! At all!"

"Then what _did_ you mean, Chanyeol?"

"I think we should make a road trip," Chanyeol said, nodding to himself and crossing his arms.

Baekhyun blinked, "We?"

"Yeah. I mean. You and me? If that sounds like something you'd like to do?"

Baekhyun brushed off the plethora of imagines that his mind conjured because of just _how good_ doing quite a lot of things with Chanyeol sounded. He took a sip of the coffee Sehun handled him, hoping his blush would be attributed to the heat.

"That sounds like fun," he mumbled at last.

"Good. That’s- nice," Chanyeol was smiling too, and Baekhyun sort of... lost himself in his eyes. Gross.

Sehun coughed.

"Oh! Yeah!" Chanyeol scrambled for his phone, "I came across this forum yesterday," he said, shoving the phone into Baekhyun's hand and taking it away before he could even focus his eyes, "and they have figured out PCY's hometown while researching something about his publisher."

"They did?" It was the first time Baekhyun heard something like that, which was weird seeing as he had notification alerts to mentions of PCY and all of their books in more sites than he could count.

"Yeah. And you know. That happens to be where I grew up. So..." Chanyeol trailed off.

"Oh... wait weren't you from Seoul?"

Chanyeol smiled at him, running a hand through his nape, "I am. But we moved when I was young and went to school there. My parents still live there. And my best friend drops by once in a while, too."

Baekhyun stomped down on the jealousy that brought up hearing Chanyeol refer to someone else as his best friend. Even if Baekhyun considered Jongdae _his_ best friend. Yeollie was... different.

"But still, it's pretty close by, so I thought that maybe we could go meet with the other Byun Baekhyuns. I hope you don't mind, but I wrote to those who came up on Facebook and in like... the phonebook and-"

"Do you have a phonebook?" Baekhyun interrupted. It was, by far, the least important question he had in mind, but, at the same time, it was the easiest one.

"I didn't. I do now. Anyway, most of them haven't written back yet, but I'm confident the will. How does that sound?"

"Good. Nice. I mean. It's super-duper weird, but what hasn't been about this whole mess?"

"Do you think you'll be able to take some time off school? For like... a couple of weeks?" Chanyeol looked so pretty when he smiled, it took Baekhyun a minute to tear his eyes away from him and really think about what he was asking.

His professors had made it pretty clear that he wasn't exactly welcomed in class until things calmed down, but it felt wrong to just go away. Just when he was about to express his concerns, a little glimmer of an idea came through.

"You know... To graduate, I have to make this big research project. I was planning on thinking about it next year but... I do think I have enough credits for it. And ‘I travelled across the country talking to my namesakes while learning about the author who dedicated me his book’ sound like one hell of a journalism article."

Chanyeol's smile was blinding. Sehun shot him a thumbs up that somehow managed to be sarcastic. Baekhyun was starting to get excited.

\----

Baekhyun wasn't a list person. He was relaxed by nature, curious of all the possible outcomes life had to offer, if only you were brave enough not to plan and let it do as it pleased.

But now. Now he needed a plan. He needed lists and budgets and a route map.

Ok, so what if his list wasn't really the precise, extensive thing he'd thought it'd be? It was a good beginning as any.

In all honesty, only two items were written (in his mind, he wasn't about to risk losing such an important list): Number 1: find out who the fuck is PCY and why they love Byun Baekhyun. Number 2: Woo Yeol and come back home with a boyfriend.

Because, let's be real. Baekhyun had known Chanyeol liked him for ages. And the feeling was mutual. It was so mutual that he sometimes wanted to pull his hair out because they could be making out all the time, only that they weren't. And, as much as Baekhyun loved flirting and the whole sexual tension thing, he'd thought that they'd be done with it by now.

So, this was the perfect chance. A whole two weeks, only the two of them cramped in Chanyeol's van or in dingy motels. It'd be far from glamorous, but that's what made it sort of romantic, right?

And then there were the other Byun Baekhyuns. As far as his research had taken him, there weren't a lot, at least not in Korea, but still enough to make it weird for him to think about this people living their lives with Baekhyun's name as theirs. It was a little bit intimidating, after the original excitement wore off, and not for the first time Baekhyun was terribly grateful that Chanyeol would be going with him. And that he’d been given those weeks off the shop, or whatever.

The week before the trip was exhausting. As great of an idea as taking the whole project as his senior thesis was, it still required meeting after meeting with his advisor, emailing his professors back and forth, and making sure his assignments were up to date. All on top of trying to pack a backpack that was small enough to carry and still had clothes that wouldn't make him look like a hobo two days in.

He'd barely seen Chanyeol at all the past few days, and in result he was starting to feel irked (Jongdae's words, not his).

The start of their supposedly epic road trip was quite anticlimactic, seeing as two of the five Byun Baekhyun's lived in Seoul. He picked Yeol up from the shop (and wow if he wasn't the prettiest guy he'd ever seen. Like. Wow) and they had walked together to the subway. It was loud enough that they couldn't really talk at all. Baekhyun watched him as he fiddled with his camera, messing with its settings.

Officially, Chanyeol was going as his cameraman, ready to document the encounter of vastly different people, brought together by their shared name. In reality, he was there to take Baekhyun's mind off the way the girl sitting across from them was trying to slyly take his picture.

\----

The first meeting was incredibly dull. It's not like Baekhyun had been expecting an epic reunion, filled with tears and shared anecdotes, but he had been expecting... something. Or, at least, something more than a thirty-something guy with thinly concealed disinterest and who wouldn't answer his questions in more than two syllables.

Still, having Yeol there helped more than what he would have imagined. Baekhyun wasn’t shy by any definition of the word, but having someone to fill the awkward silences that were bound to happen meant the world to him.

The meeting with the second Byun Baekhyun was much more interesting. For starters, Baekhyun had only known his address before sending his letter to ask for an interview, and therefore he wasn't expecting a lot.

An old man, old enough to be their grandparent, opened the door when they knocked. He sat them in his living room and told them that his wife had gone out to buy something for them to eat, and that she had made him promise that he wouldn't start the interview without her. They'd been married for almost fifty years, he said. Three children and several grandchildren later, he would be lost without her.

Baekhyun felt instantly at ease with this other Byun Baekhyun, and the same seemed true for Chanyeol. The taller hadn't really relaxed at all during their first interview, despite the fact that on the surface he seemed as carefree as ever. Only Baekhyun seemed to be able to see de tightness on his shoulders, the way his smile seemed to be duller than its usual 100 watts.

It didn't take long for this Byun Baekhyun's wife to arrive. The woman was short, almost comically so, but there was something about the way she fretted around them that made her imposing. It reminded Baekhyun of his own grandma, of how she'd act every time he went to visit her.

Even though he was about twice as tall as she was, Chanyeol seemed fascinated by her, instantly getting up to help her put what she’d bought away. It was incredibly endearing, especially when she thanked him, patting his cheek. Baekhyun swore that Yeol was blushing, and he had the urge to grab the taller's camera and capture this moment. Chanyeol's camera was with him, though, so Baekhyun had to settle for taking it with his phone. Still, it was a damn cute picture.

They ended up staying with them way longer than planned, even considering that they had arrived early due to the dullness of the previous Byun Baekhyun.

Even though they had even less in common with him than they did with the other Byun Baekhyun, there was something about the way he talked about his life and his marriage, about how grateful he was for everything he had, that left Baekhyun thinking long after they said their goodbyes.

It was dark already when they decided to head back to the book shop. Chanyeol was officially out of duty for at least two more weeks, but he still wanted to come by to check whether Sehun was fending all right.

They walked side by side for a couple of blocks, Baekhyun still pondering everything the man had told them.

"It’s nice, isn’t it? the way they are still so in love," Chanyeol said after a while, voice almost reverent.

Baekhyun nodded, before realizing it was probably the longest he'd ever been quiet in front of Chanyeol. It felt good, though, to know that he didn't have to fill every silence when he was with him.

Sometimes, Baekhyun felt like he was pretending to be himself more than he was actually being himself. For a long time, only Jongdae and Joon had known how the real him was, had seen him become that person. Very few people had bothered to get to know that side of him since then, almost everyone dismissing Baekhyun as a loud and generally annoying but still funny enough guy. And it wasn't a bad way to be seen, he supposed. But sometimes, it was tiring.

He wasn't sure if it had something to do with the way they'd met, or if it was simply Chanyeol's personality, but he'd never felt the need to put up a front with him. And it was extremely refreshing.

They were close to the store when Yeol broke the silence once again, "Are you all set up for tomorrow?"

He nodded, but this time he felt that he had to, you know, actually say something. With words.

"Yeah. It's weird packing for road trips. I don't even know if I’m going to use like half of that shit."

Chanyeol nodded back.

"That happens. Though, you know that we'll be staying at my parents' most of the time, so you can borrow whatever."

"Thanks. Are they really cool with me staying over? I mean, they don't even know me."

Chanyeol ruffled his bangs, "Just because you haven't met them doesn't mean they don't know about you."

Was Yeol telling him that he'd told his parents about him? Because that was... a good thought. One Baekhyun would probably think about before sleeping and feel warm all over.

"Thanks. For everything. For... you know. Dropping everything to come with me to look for damn PCY."

"It's my pleasure. Really. And I really, honestly don't think PCY meant to make you upset. I bet he's feeling really, really sorry right now."

Baekhyun sighed. He was right, he supposed. PCY didn't strike him as the type to go through this sort of trouble for shits and giggles. Still, it had been quite stupid of them to publish his name just like that.

"I know. What I still don't know is who they are. Or how they know me. Or why the hell they thought it was a good idea to confess their feelings like that."

Somewhere between first thinking about it and actually getting to interview the other Byun Baekhyuns, he'd come to realize that the chance that the book was dedicated to another Byun Baekhyun was too small to even take into consideration. He was mostly still thinking about talking to the other Byun Baekhyuns as an excuse to run away with Chanyeol, and he was surprisingly okay with that.

"Maybe he is bad with words, you know."

Baekhyun stared, skeptically, "They are a writer, you know. Writing is kind of what they do for a living."

"Real life words, whatever, you know what I mean. Maybe he's shy."

"Why do you keep calling them a he? We don't know the first thing about them, and assuming their gender will only make us biased in our research."

Chanyeol smiled at him, knocking their shoulders together, "Spoken like a true journalist."

"I am a true journalist. Or, rather, I will be. Soon, hopefully."

"You will," Chanyeol was still smiling, looking ahead. Even in the really unflattering street lights he looked unfairly pretty, "And. They are a he. I mean, PCY is a he. I read it somewhere."

Baekhyun narrowed his eyes. He'd read everything there was to know about PCY at least twice, first when they came out and then in the past week to look for clues. "You did? Where?"

Chanyeol's laughter sounded a little bit strained, if you cared to look for it. "I don't know, Baek. You know I don't bookmark every single thing I read online, unlike you."

"I like to keep them just in case, sue me," Baekhyun rolled his eyes as they turned to the street where the shop was. Out from the window they could see Sehun on his phone, a cup of coffee sitting beside him.

"You want to come in? I can have Sehun make you something," Chanyeol winced, knowing probably it wouldn't be that easy.

"Nah, I'm good. I have to go home and finish packing. Big day tomorrow."

Chanyeol nodded, "It is. Pick you up at nine?"

Baekhyun suppressed a whine. Nine was _early_ , "Sure. See you tomorrow."

\----

Jongdae was already up by the time he dragged himself out of bed.

"Why are you up so early?" he whined, dumping himself on their kitchen table and accepting the cup of coffee Jongdae handed him gratefully. Sometimes he really loved his best friend.

"Some of us have school, you know. Not that I wouldn't love to go elope with my crush in search for the famous author that apparently loves me. But sure, whatever. I guess school is fine too."

Baekhyun patted his arm, still mostly asleep.

"You know you won't get another chance like this, right?"

"How so?"

"You, Chanyeol. Alone in a smelly car for hours. That's a recipe for romance, Baek."

"I know. But-"

He was interrupted by the doorbell. Damn Yeollie for being so punctual.

Jongdae took pity on him and got up to answer the door.

"I'm afraid our sleeping beauty isn't quite ready yet," he pointed at Baekhyun, who pouted. He was still in his soft pajamas, hair probably a mess. He bet he didn't exactly look like a catch.

"I figured this would happen," Yeol stage-whispered. When Baekhyun bothered to pry one of his eyes open, he was wearing this sickeningly sweet look, "I brought pastries."

"Oh God, I love you," Baekhyun moaned, making gimme hands.

Chanyeol placed the bag on the table, thanking Jongdae when he poured him a cup of coffee.

Baekhyun took a bite of something terribly sweet and wonderfully powdered, feeling instantly better, "Hi," he mumbled, mouth still full.

"Hi you. Are you up now?"

He shrugged.

Fifteen minutes later Baekhyun found himself ready to leave. He'd gotten dressed surprisingly fast, while Jongdae helped Chanyeol get everything he was taking to the van.

This was it. This felt important, like no matter what happened in the following weeks nothing would ever be the same. It was a scary thought, but hopefully everything would be better at their return.

Baekhyun let Jongdae hug the shit out of him before they left, done with pretending he wouldn't miss his best friend.

"You have your phone, right?" he asked, walking him to the van, where Chanyeol had been waiting for a couple of minutes. Baekhyun nodded.

"Okay. You check in sometimes, okay? Don't make me have to call Chanyeol to hear from you."

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, squeezing Jongdae's arm, "I promise, mum. Now let me go or Chanyeol will get mad at us."

It was Jongdae's turn to snort, "Yeah, right. As if he ever would."

Baekhyun sat beside Chanyeol, and they both waved their goodbyes. They were finally off to the adventure.

\----

Being in a road trip with Chanyeol was somehow exactly what Baekhyun had expected.

They had decided they would spend a week meeting the three remaining Byun Baekhyuns, driving through the country, and then spend the remaining week at Chanyeol's parents', which was on their way back home.

Baekhyun hadn't realized how much he needed to be away until their first night at one of the dreaded dingy motels. Which was not actually a dingy motel at all, but more of a small and cozy inn.

They had decided to stay there for a couple of days, seeing as two of the other Byun Baekhyuns lived close by and it'd be easier to have some sort of headquarter so that Chanyeol didn't have to spend his weeks off driving around aimlessly.

The lady at the front desk mistook them for a couple, but neither of them bothered to correct her.

It wasn't until they got into their room that Baekhyun thought that they maybe should've said something. Because, obviously, there was only one bed.

Chanyeol seemed to realize too, stopping beside him on his way into the room, "Oh. Do you want me to go get another room?"

Baekhyun shook his head decisively. This was perfect. Woo Yeol, he told himself.

"Don't be ridiculous, this is fine, we can share," he told him, "Unless... you'd rather not?"

Chanyeol laughed, and he felt it in the pit of his stomach, "Of course I don't mind. This is prime road trip experience."

That night's dinner was nice. It almost felt like a first date, but one in which Baekhyun wasn't nervous or feeling awkward. The food was great, and Baekhyun was sleepy way earlier than what he had hoped for.

Getting ready for bed with Chanyeol was so normal that made him feel warm inside. They took turns to shower and get into their pajamas, and then Baekhyun sat on the bed with his phone, calling Jongdae to check in. They'd been apart for like half a day, but they hadn't been so far away physically since Jongdae's family had gone on that trip to America when they were twelve.

Chanyeol got into bed when he was still on the phone, and he found it harder to keep his mind in the conversation when he could feel Yeol’s warmth so close to him.

Baekhyun couldn't sleep, even if he was terribly tired after a day sitting in the van. He couldn't get his mind to stop shouting that Chanyeol was right there! And he could touch him if he wanted to!

It was, in fact, silenced when he heard him whisper from his side of the bed.

"Hey, Baek?"

Baekhyun turned towards the sound of his voice, even if the room was pitch black, "Hm?"

"Did you even finish 'The Prince of Darkness'?"

Baekhyun sat up so quickly he got dizzy, "Oh my God!"

He'd been so worried about everything he hadn't even started it yet. He hadn't even packed it among everything he had brought to the trip. What was he thinking?

"Hey, calm down," Chanyeol had sat too, and was now rubbing his back consolingly, "You've had a lot in your mind. Nobody blames you for forgetting about this."

Baekhyun understood this. Rationally. "I've been waiting for that book for a year, Yeol. What the fuck is wrong with me?"

"Nothing's wrong with you, Baek. You know that, right?"

They sat like that for a while, until Baekhyun finally sighed and leaned back on the bed. And, if Chanyeol kept his arm around his back, well, he sure wouldn't be the one to complain about it.

\----

They met two of the remaining Byun Baekhyuns the following day, and while he couldn't say the visits were uneventful, it was painfully clear that neither of them were the end receivers of the dedicatory.

To begin with, the first one was ten. Baekhyun wasn't even sure how he came up in online registers, but his mum didn't seem to know either.

He wasn't sure if he could even use this story as part of his research, but it was nice talking to them, even if the kid seemed a bit weired out by the fact they shared a name. Little Byun Baekhyun had football practice after lunch, so the visit was shorter than expected. While they had decided that they'd take their time to interview each Byun Baekhyun, there was no reason why they couldn't make the most of their day.

The fourth Byun Baekhyun lived in a small town an hour away from their inn. Chanyeol had emailed them when they got to their town, letting them know of their change of plans. They grabbed lunch in a cafe facing the town square, and Baekhyun took his time to look around. It was so weird to know that all those people had lives completely unknown to him, and feelings and thoughts like everyone else.

He turned to Yeol when the food arrived, "Have you heard anything at all from Sehun?"

Chanyeol took a bite out of his sandwich, humming thoughtfully, "Sort of. I texted him earlier and he just sent a thumbs up, so I don't think he's burned down the place yet."

"It's weird going away, isn't it? I mean, we haven't been gone for more than a day and I'm already craving Sehun's coffee."

"I hear you. But it's nice. Knowing you can go away and that when you came back everything will be waiting for you like you left it."

Baekhyun hummed. He still couldn't shake the feeling that things were about to change, hopefully for good.

They finished their lunch in silence and went for a walk in the park. Byun Baekhyun had told them that they weren't home yet, but that they'd love to see them later that afternoon.

"So, what's the plan after this?" Baekhyun asked, heading towards the small fountain in the middle of the park.

"How so?"

"I mean. Your parents expect us next week, and we have almost finished everything we came to do in the first day. Supposing we take a whole day to meet the last Byun Baekhyun, that leaves us like four and a half days. What do you want to do?"

"I... I hadn't really thought about it. I mean, we could stay at the inn?"

"That's fine. For like a day. There's not much to do around there. Besides, it's your vacation we're talking about. I already feel bad that you have to follow me around."

"What are you talking about? I love following you around. Besides, it's not as if I'm doing a lot of work. We sit, you talk to them, I take a couple of photos, they give us cookies. Sounds like a pretty good job to me."

Baekhyun smiled, eyes going to his feet. It was moments like this that he was a second from kissing Chanyeol or taking his hand, and each time this happened he could think about less reasons not to do it.

"Hey," he said, sitting up straighter. He'd had an idea, "did you bring a swimsuit with you?"

\-----

This last Byun Baekhyun had been as uneventful and unhelpful as the preceding ones, if only easier to talk to. He was about their age working in one of the shops they had most likely walked by after lunch. He was funny and interesting, and curious about their lives in the city. It was the first one Baekhyun would've actually wanted as a friend.

Chanyeol seemed to like him too, in the same way he'd liked Jongin when they first met. There was something about him that made you think he was a really good person.

Baekhyun was getting sick of asking the same question over and over again. There was actually a section of his interview dedicated to finding out if there was any way they were the Byun Baekhyun the dedicatory was about, but every answer they got was more or less the same: No, they didn’t know PCY. No, they had no idea who could he be. And yes, they were glad they weren’t the one Byun Baekhyun this whole mess was about.

Baekhyun had been kind of sad when they had left, knowing they would probably never see each other again, but it didn't last long. He'd called Junmyeon on their way out of the park, and he had been thrilled to hear about his plan. They'd made plans to meet with him the day after tomorrow, and Baekhyun was really excited for him to meet Chanyeol.

They spent the rest of the day lounging in their room, watching TV and playing poker with the complimentary set of cards. That didn't last long, though, because Chanyeol sucked at lying, and beating him lost its fun in two rounds flat.

He kept his plans of seeing Junmyeon a secret from Jongdae when they talked that night, and told Chanyeol he'd explain everything on their way there.

While they had some downtime, Baekhyun started compiling everything he'd written about the Byun Baekhyuns so far. He'd already included the beginning of his search for PCY, citing his sources on whatever he could find. It bothered him that the two most solid clues they had, both PCY's gender and hometown, had come from Yeol, and he hadn't been able to corroborate them at all.

And he wasn't stupid, he knew how fishy that was. Several theories had crossed his mind. The first one had been that Chanyeol knew PCY personally. That made sense, considering they had probably gone to school together and everything. It didn't clarify anything at all regarding how PCY knew Baekhyun, but Chanyeol was terribly loyal, and Baekhyun didn't doubt that he'd keep PCY's identity a secret if he asked him to.

The second one was so ridiculous that he almost didn't want to give it a second thought, but every time he tried to forget about it something brought it back. What if Chanyeol _was_ PCY? He certainly knew enough about the books to have written them, even if Baekhyun was better than him at Shadow Legends’ trivia. There was also the whole 'we have the same hometown' thing.

It didn't make sense, though. Chanyeol worked every day in the bookshop, and Baekhyun had never seen him write anything. He didn't think Sehun had seen him write either, because then surely, he would've told him, right? And then there was the fact that, while Baekhyun was pretty sure Chanyeol liked him romantically, it would've been terribly easier to just confess in person. Baekhyun wasn't extremely picky, he would've been fine with an 'I love you' and some kisses. On top of everything, Baekhyun had seen Chanyeol almost every single day since they'd met. Even when he wasn't working at the shop all day he'd make some time to drop by, and most of the weekends they would either go somewhere or play video games at Baekhyun's

So, neither story was completely satisfying, but there was certainly something going on. Still, Baekhyun trusted Yeol enough to know that whatever secret he was keeping it wasn't meant to hurt him, so he was willing to see where everything went.

"You're quiet tonight. Everything okay?" Chanyeol piped up from where he was curled around his own computer, staring at him with those eyes that made him want to kiss him senseless.

"Yeah. Just tired," he powered off his laptop, setting it back in its case, "That's the thing with breaks, you know. Even if you're not really doing anything you're still tired from the rest of the year."

Chanyeol nodded, unfolding himself and popping his back, "It's pretty late. We could probably grab something quick to eat from downstairs and head back to watch a movie?"

"That sounds actually perfect," he said, blushing when his stomach grumbled at the mention of food. He'd been so far into his thoughts he hadn't eaten anything in hours.

Chanyeol laughed at him, offering his arm for him to take as they went into the dining room.

\-----

“Yeol!”

“Hm?” he could hear the rustling of the bedsheets, which meant Chanyeol must be turning to face him.

“What if PCY is old?”

Chanyeol seemed to wake up more at that, “What?”

“I mean, what are the chances that he’s around our age and already so successful? What if he’s like fifty? I’m barely twenty-three, Yeol, I can’t date a fifty-year-old!”

Suddenly, Baekhyun felt the bed trembling, “It’s not funny!”

“It is,” Baekhyun could practically see his smile, even in the darkness, “There’s no age for love, Baek.”

“That’s bullshit. That is creepy, YA level bullshit. You’re just a romantic.”

“That’s true. But I don’t think PCY is fifty.”

“Wow Chanyeol, you’re so helpful and good with words,” Baekhyun huffed, turning around in bed, “You should write a self-help book or something. You’d get rich.”

Baekhyun fell asleep to the sound of Chanyeol’s laughter.

\-----

After another lazy day at the inn, Baekhyun was terribly eager to go to Junmyeon's.

He'd gotten them checked out and put Chanyeol and their baggage back in the van by the time Chanyeol couldn't hold back his curiosity.

"So, where exactly are we going?"

"We're going to the beach!" Baekhyun jumped, putting on his sunglasses and looking back at Chanyeol, who was smiling indulgently.

"I figured, since you gave me a map to a coast town before we left. What I meant to ask is why are we going to the beach?"

Baekhyun frowned at him in mock offense, but he was so excited his smile was back in a second.

"Remember what I told you before? About how I felt bad you were working on your weeks off?"

"I do. And I remember telling you I didn't mind working if it meant spending time with you."

Which, no. He hadn't exactly said it like that, Baekhyun would definitely remember him saying something like that. But he swallowed and blinked and saved those words in the bit of his brain he reserved for Yeollie.

"Well, I still felt bad. But then I remembered Junmyeon has been telling me to go visit him at his beach house for like a year now, and I never got the chance. So, I called him and asked him if he had a spare room for the two of us and he was happy we'd see each other again so yeah. We're going there," he turned back to Chanyeol, frowning when he noticed he didn't look nearly as pleased as Baekhyun had expected him to be.

"Junmyeon?" he asked, looking almost... tense. Baekhyun was puzzled for a moment until it clicked. Chanyeol was jealous.

"Oh God, Yeol!" he laughed, startling the other, who took his eyes from the road for the first time since they'd hit the road, "It's not like that. Junmyeon has always been like a brother to me. Besides, if Jongdae heard you thinking what I think you were thinking we'd never hear the end of it."

"Oh," Chanyeol mumbled, and he was blushing, he was definitely blushing. He was so cute.

"Oh," Baekhyun mimicked, laughing again. Seeing how jealous Yeol had gotten had somehow managed to make his mood even better.

"So, Jongdae and Junmyeon?" Chanyeol asked after a minute, throwing him a small smile.

"Not really. But Jongdae did have a crush on him for literal years. I'm pretty sure he still does, but don't let him know I told you that."

"I promise I won't. Did you go to school together?"

"Well, Junmyeon is a year older than us, so we weren't classmates. His family moved into the house next to mine when we were like ten, and the three of us spent a lot of time together after school. Then we began high school but remained pretty close, even if by then we'd met Jongin and Kyungsoo. We'd spend the weekends piling into the sofa of whoever had gotten their parents to buy them the latest video game. And it was always Junmyeon, of course. His parents are rich, you know. Like, filthy."

"And he's okay with you bringing me over? Even if he knows nothing about me?"

"Just because you haven't met him it doesn't mean he doesn’t know of you," Baekhyun mimicked Chanyeol's words from the day before they left, grinning when they made Chanyeol smile.

"Besides, Junmyeon is literally the nicest guy I know. He finished school last year and moved back to his parents' beach house to set up a small shop there."

"What kind of shop?"

Baekhyun smiled again, "He owns a bookshop, too. He was the one who first recommend me Shadow Legends, even if I don't think he's as obsessed with it as I am."

"He sounds great," Chanyeol said softly.

"He is. I think you'll like him."

"He seems to care about you a lot. I'm sure I will."

Baekhyun couldn't have swiped away his smile even if he'd tried.

\----

It took them close to two hours to get to Junmyeon's house. Baekhyun jumped out of the van as soon as it stopped moving, running to hug his friend, who'd apparently been waiting for them.

"Hyung! I've missed you! Have you been waiting for long? Wow, your house looks awesome! How is the shop? Can we go see it?" Baekhyun said in one breath, all while hugging Junmyeon as hard as he could. He'd really missed him.

Junmyeon laughed, the sound instantly soothing him, "Calm down and breathe for a moment, okay? We'll have plenty of time to talk. And I think your Chanyeol needs help."

Baekhyun broke the hug to turn to look at the van. Chanyeol was wrestling with four bags, attempting to get everything in one hand as he tried to lock the van up with the other.

"Sorry! I'm back," he said, running to grab one of the bags, "here, give me this."

"It's fine. You scared me jumping out of the van like that, but it looked like a nice reunion."

"It was," Junmyeon came up behind them, helping Chanyeol with another bag. "Hi, I'm Junmyeon. Nice to meet you."

"Hi," Chanyeol tried to free one of his hands to shake Junmyeon's, but he desisted soon after, "Thanks for letting us stay at your house."

"Oh, don't worry about it! I've been wanting to see our Baekhyunnie for a long time, but he doesn't come to visit me anymore. I've already taken out our high school yearbooks and everything!"

Chanyeol grinned at that, and in that moment Baekhyun realized what a terrible mistake he'd made. No one knew as many embarrassing stories from his teen years as Junmyeon did, and he already knew Chanyeol would be dying to listen to them.

"Okay!" he said loudly, "Why don't we go inside so you can make fun of me in private?"

\-----

Despite the imminent humiliation, Baekhyun felt that he'd made the right decision. Having Chanyeol meet Junmyeon was as close as having him meet his parents he could get without doing so, and he could already see that Junmyeon approved of him. Not that he hadn't already, Junmyeon had been hearing everything there was to hear about Chanyeol since they'd started working together, but Chanyeol didn't need to know all that.

Junmyeon's house really was beautiful. It was the sort of house you didn't think actually existed outside magazines, with spacious rooms and wide windows facing the beach. But this house seemed well lived in, while still spotless. Baekhyun could see the picture frames scattered around the living room, a couple including pictures of himself, Junmyeon's books in a neat pile by the couch, his sunglasses by the chimney.

He could tell that Junmyeon was very happy in this house, and it made him happy in turn. They'd all been more than a little worried when, barely after finishing his studies in Business, Junmyeon had packed up his life and moved out of the city. But it had done him well, and suddenly Baekhyun couldn't wait to call Jongdae and tell him that night.

"Have you had lunch already?"

"Not really. We got up early so I wasn't really hungry."

"Good. I was just making something to eat, come sit with me at the kitchen."

Of course, Junmyeon being Junmyeon, wasn't 'just making something to eat', but making enough frittata to feed a small nation or a hungry Jongin.

"Wow. That looks amazing, Junmyeon," Chanyeol said, looking speechless. Baekhyun propped himself in one of the stools, patting the one next to him for Yeol to sit.

"Thank you, Chanyeol! I haven't made this recipe before, but hopefully it'll taste good as well."

"That's nonsense. Junmyeon's been in charge of feeding me since we were like fifteen. He can pour water and it'll taste better than whatever I do."

"That's not true. But I do admit I was worried when he left home and moved in with Jongdae. I spent a year overcooking and sending them Tupperwares because I was afraid they'd starve."

Baekhyun felt Chanyeol's eyes on him, and smiled at him, shrugging, "We would've. When Joon moved out of town and in here Jongdae panicked and signed up for online cooking classes."

Chanyeol looked skeptic. At first sight, Jongdae didn't look like he could make more than ramen and coffee.

"That's true. We cooked together over video chat a couple of months ago and he was doing great," Junmyeon piped in, taking the last frittata out of the oven. Baekhyun hadn't been hungry up until now, but now it was all he could think about.

Junmyeon seemed to realize this, "Eat, we'll talk later," he said, cutting a couple of portions and placing them in two plates, "Be careful, it's hot."

Baekhyun woke up from his food-induced trance in time for dessert. Chanyeol was finishing his second portion, looking as transfixed as Baekhyun had been just now.

"Feeling better?" Junmyeon smiled as Chanyeol finished his plate. Baekhyun was sleepy. "Do you want dessert or should I show you your room?"

\----

Their room was nice, and it seemed way nicer once Baekhyun woke up from his hopefully short nap. He hadn't meant to actually fall asleep, but as soon as Joon had lead them to the room Baekhyun had felt the soft-looking bed was calling him.

Their bags were already there, Chanyeol's on the bed next to his, but Yeol himself was nowhere to be found.

Baekhyun was startled to find out it was dark outside once he got out of the room. He was still making up for the past few stressful weeks, but this was just ridiculous. He walked past the kitchen, realizing he was hungry again, even if it felt like he'd been full only a couple of minutes ago.

He found both Chanyeol and Junmyeon sitting on the outside dock facing the sea. They seemed to be getting along great, Chanyeol having lost that stiffness that he'd had when he'd first met Joon. Baekhyun stayed inside for a moment, watching them talk and laugh together. He'd told Joon he liked Chanyeol a long time ago, and while they seemed to be growing closer every day, he couldn't seem to take that one last step to make them official. And to be officially allowed to kiss Yeol whenever he wanted to.

Chanyeol was the first one to see him, and even Baekhyun noticed the way his smile seemed to both lighten up and soften when he spotted him. He was so in love with this guy.

He slid the door open, stepping into the deck and sitting in the remaining chair.

"Hey. Slept well?"

"Yeah. I was more tired than I thought I'd be, though."

"That's normal. Chanyeol here was telling me about everything that has been happening since The Prince of Darkness came out. Everything's been pretty crazy for you."

Baekhyun winced. He'd called Junmyeon the day after he'd found out about the dedicatory, but he'd been pretty shaken up still and he wasn't sure he'd made much sense.

"It's been better, this last couple of days."

"It was a good idea, leaving for a while. People'll be over it by the time you get back."

"Hopefully. It still weirds me out, though."

Chanyeol shifted, getting up and grabbing his mug from the coffee table, "Do you want something from the kitchen? I think there's some hot chocolate left."

"That sounds great. Thank you Yeollie."

Baekhyun followed him with his eyes as he walked to the kitchen, snapping back when he heard Joon clearing his throat. His friend was smiling at him pointedly.

"Chanyeol seems nice."

"He is, hyung. I'm dying over here! He's great and sweet and has been wonderful for as long as I've known him but after this whole mess he's been even better and I'm sort of falling for him for real but nothing is happening? Why is nothing happening?"

"I can't answer that for you, Baekhyunnie. But he does seem to really like you, so wait him out, okay?"

"Sure, whatever. It's not like I can do anything else," he grumbled. Junmyeon patted his knee consolingly, just as Chanyeol came back out.

\----

He waited until they were in bed before calling Jongdae. He hadn't called him the day before, afraid their plans would slip out, instead checking in by text. But tonight, he was excited to tell him everything about their visit.

"Baek! How are you? Any news?"

That was code for 'has something happened with Chanyeol?' which, unfortunately, hadn't, so he just sighed.

"Hey Dae. No news, but I do have something to tell you. Remember Joon's been telling me to come visit him?"

Jongdae gasped so hard Baekhyun pulled his phone away from his ear, "Are you there? Without me? How is he? Is his house as nice as it looked over FaceTime? He's not overworking himself, is he? Have you seen the shop yet? Baek, I need answers!"

Baekhyun let him ramble into the phone for a minute before picking back up. Maybe this was what Joon felt whenever he talked to him.

"Dae, you called him last week, and he sounded fine, didn't he?" Jongdae mumbled, knowing he was right, "So no, I haven't seen the shop yet, yes he does look as great as ever, and his house is even nicer in person. And he looks happy. For real. Anyway, I'm tired, but I just wanted to tell you."

"I'm still mad you went to visit him without me, you know. At least I hope Chanyeol appreciates how awesome he is."

"I'm pretty sure he does. Bye, Dae."

"Bye Byun. Kiss Joon for me, will you?"

\-----

The next couple of days were the happiest Baekhyun could remember. They'd met Junmyeon's shop and its manager Yixing, they'd spent hours and hours there, almost as many as they'd spent on the beach. Baekhyun had played in the water like he hadn't since he was a kid, lying in the warm sand next to Chanyeol feeling worn and wet, muscles well used. They'd talked a lot, about life and books and everything. About their friends back home and school. They ate so much Baekhyun was surprised when his jeans fit, and they laughed until their stomachs hurt more times that he could count.

It was perfect, shortly, and Baekhyun felt like a part of him was breaking when they had to leave again. He'd cried, Joon had cried, and even Chanyeol had cried a little. Junmyeon had extended his standing invitation to Chanyeol as well, telling them both that he was always just a phone call away.

The drive back was terribly bittersweet. Baekhyun felt like crying again, but Chanyeol had managed to get him excited about meeting his family and his hometown.

They had to meet the last Byun Baekhyun first.

They had emailed each other several times already, so Baekhyun felt like he actually knew them by the time Chanyeol parked in front of a small house in the middle of nowhere.

A girl not much older than them opened the door. They had met the last Byun Baekhyun, and she was great.

\----

In a way, it was relieving knowing that he was, in fact, the Byun Baekhyun the dedicatory was about. In a way, it would've been anticlimactic to get this far a find out that it was meant for someone else. Besides, with the whole Byun Baekhyuns thing behind them, Baekhyun could worry about the most pressing matters. Those matters being Chanyeol's family.

The Parks lived in a regular-looking house in the suburbs. Chanyeol had a sister, Yoora, who Baekhyun had met back in Seoul, and had actually liked a lot, but she was working in the city and wouldn’t be there to support him.

He wasn’t sure being there would even help him at all. If PCY did live there, how did he know Baekhyun? He’d certainly never been in this town, even if it was rather close to Seoul, and the only person who’d lived there he knew was Chanyeol himself.

Chanyeol's parents had set up a bed for him in Chanyeol's old room. It still looked like a twelve-year old lived there, and Baekhyun couldn't help but to tease Chanyeol about it.

Despite his initial nervousness, Chanyeol's parents were great. He didn't know why he'd been so worried about meeting them, considering how much he liked Chanyeol and how obviously he'd been brought up by them.

The Parks seemed to really like him too, if he could say so. Chanyeol's mum had welcomed him warmly, making him feel at home moments after first stepping into the house.

They took their time in town easily. After all, they'd be staying for all of a week, there was no need to go rushing about getting answers about the identity of PCY. Baekhyun had asked Chanyeol's parents, though, but they hadn't told him much more than that they were huge fans of PCY and that he hoped Baekhyun found him.

Reactions across town were, when they began asking the following day, strikingly similar. Everyone there knew Chanyeol, of course, but they seemed to know Baekhyun too, if the way most of them went 'oh, of course' when Chanyeol introduced him.

Being there was weird for Baekhyun. On one side, he felt like he was being shown around town by his boyfriend (wishful thinking had always been his forte), learning about his school and his childhood. Still, everyone they asked about PCY had the same mysterious reaction. Most of them would laugh a little, pat him in the arm and tell him they hoped he'd find him soon. Which was nice of them, but not exactly helpful. And, even though no one was telling him anything, he could tell everyone knew something.

He got to meet Minseok, Chanyeol's best friend, who seemed to think Chanyeol was an idiot because of something. Baekhyun didn't exactly get it, but he did like Minseok a lot. He reminded him of Junmyeon in some ways, while he could definitely see Kyungsoo in others.

Minseok didn't live in town either, apparently. His family owned a small chain of restaurants, so he mostly traveled around the country supervising them.

They spent many nights sitting together, Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Minseok. Minseok had been the least helpful of them all, rolling his eyes when asked about PCY and not bothering to dignify that question with an answer. Chanyeol's mum clearly loved Minseok a lot, pampering him even more than he had pampered Baekhyun when they first got there. Baekhyun had to admit that he was a little bit jealous of him. Not only was Ms. Park's attention taken by him, but also part of Chanyeol's. While he was pleased the taller still payed him the most attention, there was no beating the whole 'childhood friends who've known each other all their lives'. Baekhyun would know. It was even worse when he found them mumbling to each other, stopping when they spotted Baekhyun. He didn't want to be jealous of the best friend, but he was.

But, despite everything, they talked a lot. It was nice hearing embarrassing stories from Chanyeol for a change, seeing as between Jongdae at home and Junmyeon when they'd stayed with him all Baekhyun's most shameful moments had been told. It was obvious Minseok cared about Chanyeol, even if he liked to tease him, and Baekhyun couldn't help to think about how much Chanyeol must miss him, being away most of the time. Baekhyun missed Joon a lot, but he still had Jongdae and Kyungsoo and Jongin.

\----

Seeing as they weren't getting the answers they needed with two days to go, Baekhyun decided to make an impromptu trip to the next town over. So, the two of them were driving the short distance there.

He'd missed being alone with Chanyeol like this. As great as his family and Minseok were, they'd barely had a minute to themselves if you didn't count sharing a room. And Baekhyun had been terribly grateful the Parks hadn't had an extra one, because the thought of sleeping in separate rooms seemed unsettling after so many days.

So, Baekhyun was basking in the calmness of being beside Yeol as he drove, something he'd done so many times in their short trip, when Chanyeol spoke up.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask you something."

Baekhyun sat up straighter. Could this be it? Was Chanyeol finally going to make a move?

"Yes?" he replied as calmly as he could.

"Suppose we find out who PCY is, and he actually loves you and everything. Do you think you could love him back?"

Baekhyun felt like crying. For the past two weeks, all he'd done was trying to get Yeol to figure out how much he liked him, taking him to meet one of his best friends, telling him stupid things about himself he hadn't told anyone before. And still, all Chanyeol seemed to do was push him towards PCY, defending him, telling him he meant well, and now asking him if he could ever love him.

And Baekhyun was tired. How could he know if he could ever love PCY if he didn't even know who he was? He did know he loved Chanyeol, but the taller didn't seem to care about that. A small part of Baekhyun, which had been increasing steadily with every comment Chanyeol said about PCY, wondered if Chanyeol pushing him to love another person wasn't making it obvious that Yeol himself didn't love him.

Baekhyun swallowed, clearing his tight throat, "I don't think so. I love someone else."

'I love _you_ ' he wanted to say. But he didn't, because he was a coward and Chanyeol apparently didn't love him back. And now they were going to have to go around a strange town asking about the most mysterious author of the country, who apparently did love Baekhyun. His life sucked.

"Oh," was all Chanyeol said back, and they drove the rest of the way in silence.

\----

While still unhelpful (and Baekhyun had this feeling that, at this point, he wasn't ever going to find something helpful), this town seemed to be more honest.

Where everyone at Chanyeol's town seemed to know about PCY but not want to talk about it, answers in this other town were mixed. Some of the farmers had never heard about PCY at all, and even less knew about his identity. Others, though, were aware of the latest scandal that came with the release of The Prince of Darkness, but admitted that, while they'd heard rumors that PCY lived close by, they had no idea if those were even true.

He felt marginally better on their way back. Chanyeol had been quiet since they'd left the car.

"PCY is an idiot," Baekhyun mumbled when they parked in the back of Chanyeol's house. He was tired and his head hurt and he was a little heartbroken.

"Yeah, maybe he is," Chanyeol said, equally quiet. It was late already, their little trip having taken most of the day, "I think he misread the signs. He thought you'd like it."

Baekhyun was quiet for a moment, "Why won't you tell me who he is?"

"What?"

"I know you know. I've been waiting for you to say something, but you keep- You know what, nevermind."

Baekhyun left the van, forcefully closing the door behind him. He heard Chanyeol scramble to get out of the car behind him, and stopped, breathing in deeply. It wasn't Chanyeol's fault that Baekhyun loved him.

"What, Baekhyun? I keep what?"

"You keep pushing me towards him!" he said, holding his ground when Chanyeol got near him, "You keep encouraging me to love him when I already told you I can't! I won't!"

"Fuck Baek, I know for a fact you’re not stupid, why cant you see-?"

And then, they were kissing.

It took Baekhyun a stunned moment before he realized that he'd been the one who began the kiss. It took him another to realize Chanyeol was kissing him back.

This wasn't how he'd pictured their first kiss, soft and gentle and loving. Baekhyun was desperate, grabbing Chanyeol's jacket to pull him as closely as he could, feeling that he'd rather die than let go of Chanyeol. Chanyeol seemed to be feeling just the same, his large palms running through Baekhyun's back, digging into his hips. His lips were bruising with the force of it, but Baekhyun was already addicted. It wasn't a perfect kiss, nor the best one Baekhyun had had, but it was what he'd needed.

He was still as confused as he'd been before, but he didn't actually care, at least now.

It was a while until they settled into the comfortable kind of kiss, Baekhyun taking Chanyeol's face is his hands, lips dragging slowly. Chanyeol had leaned against the fence of the back of his house somewhere along the kiss, and now they were mostly holding each other, even if Baekhyun's heart seemed to want to leap out of his chest.

He pressed himself closer to Chanyeol, and then he felt if. First came the dizziness, then the impact. The fence had opened behind Chanyeol, and Baekhyun was now spread on the ground on top of him, most likely crushing him.

Chanyeol's groan broke him from his stupor, and Baekhyun scrambled to get up.

"Oh my God, Yeol! Are you hurt?" he asked, helping him sit up.

"I don't think so. It will be pretty bad tomorrow, though."

Chanyeol got up, avoiding his eyes when Baekhyun looked up at him. It was then he noticed the look in his eyes. It looked a lot like regret. Did Chanyeol regret kissing him? If so, why had him? It'd been so clear to Baekhyun that he was kissing him back because he liked him too, but maybe it hadn't been that at all. Maybe Chanyeol had felt bad for not telling him about PCY after all this time. Maybe he felt sorry Baekhyun loved him when he didn't feel the same.

"I'm gonna go take a shower and then we should go to bed," Chanyeol was still avoiding his eyes, and it hurt more than what he would have imagined. Baekhyun nodded, numb, and watched as Chanyeol got into the house.

\----

Baekhyun felt like shit the next morning. He'd stayed outside for a long time, trying to make sense of his thoughts, before the cold he was feeling caught up to him. Despite being the furthest thing away from hungry, he forced himself to heat up some of the soup Chanyeol's mother had left them, eating mechanically before daring to go downstairs. Chanyeol had already been asleep by the time he got there, so he hadn't had the chance to try to talk to him about the kiss.

How had he misinterpreted everything so much? He'd thought it obvious how much he liked Chanyeol, had thought it was only a matter of time until they got together. Now, not only was he as far away from figuring out the identity of PCY as ever, but he was also terribly alone. He'd probably lost Chanyeol's friendship, and he couldn't figure out how he'd let that happen.

Chanyeol wasn't in the room when he finally gathered enough strength to get up. He felt like everything took twice the effort it normally did, from breathing to washing his hair.

He paddled downstairs, bracing himself to face Chanyeol. He knew he looked like shit, but he couldn't bring himself to care anymore.

"Good morning," he mumbled when he got into the kitchen, noticing it was only Chanyeol's parents in there, no sign of Chanyeol himself. He poured himself some coffee, looking up when he noticed his greeting had gone unanswered.

Chanyeol's parents were looking at him with a weird look in their eyes.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

Chanyeol's mum seemed to be the first to recover, "You're here! We just assumed you'd left with Chanyeol."

Baekhyun took a moment to process what she'd said "Left with Chanyeol? Where did he go?"

"Home," it was Chanyeol's dad this time, "We woke up this morning to a note that said that something'd come up at the bookshop, and that he hadn't wanted to wake us up. We assumed he'd taken you with him."

"He... left?" Baekhyun settled his mug back on the table, running outside and out of the fence that had caused so much trouble the previous night.

The van wasn't there.

And it just... didn't compute in Baekhyun's mind. Chanyeol had left him. Chanyeol had kissed him back, then pretended nothing had happened, and then gotten up in the middle of the night to run away from him, leaving him all alone in his parents' house, miles away from home. That didn't sound like the Chanyeol he knew.

He turned around, wondering how he'd face Chanyeol's parents again. He was so deep in his thoughts he didn't notice Minseok coming towards him until he touched his shoulder.

"Good morning sunshine," he smiled freezing when he took a proper look at him. Baekhyun sniffed. He refused to cry over this. He was supposed to be angry, dammit! "What's wrong?"

Baekhyun cleared his throat, "Have you heard from Chanyeol?"

Minseok was staring at him intently, not letting go of his arm. "Yeah. He texted me earlier, told me to find you here? I asked him what he meant but he hasn't answered yet so I assumed I'd come and look for him."

Baekhyun hated himself a bit for feeling relieved that Chanyeol at least hadn't left him hanging. He hardened his stance, "He left, Minseok."

"What do you mean he left?"

"I mean that last night we fought because he wouldn't tell me who PCY is and he's still trying to get me to love him so I kissed him because _he's_ the one I love, not stupid PCY and then we fell through the fence and then he wouldn't even look at me and then he got into the house and this morning I wake up and he's gone."

Baekhyun felt like crying again. Fuck Chanyeol and his stupid everything.

"Oh God, you are perfect for each other," Minseok was pinching the bridge of his nose so hard Baekhyun was afraid it was going to snap, "You're both idiots. Sit."

Baekhyun looked at where he was pointing, reluctant to sit in the dusty stairs that lead to the front door. But Minseok didn't look like he was playing, so he listened to him, turning to face him when he sat beside him.

"Look, Chanyeol made me promise not to tell you, but since he's been an asshole I think I don't have to listen to him anymore. Baekhyun, Chanyeol left because he thinks you don't love him."

Baekhyun stared, waiting for him to continue. When he didn't clarify, he shook his head, "That doesn't make any sense. I told him I couldn't love PCY because I loved someone else and later that same day I kissed him. A lot. Why would he think that?"

"Fuck, Baekhyun. You really can't see it?"

"See what?! Why don't you just tell me?!"

"Chanyeol is PCY, can't you see it?"

Baekhyun paused, "Shit. We need to go find Chanyeol."

\-----

It didn't take him long to realize he was actually and idiot. He'd managed to pack everything and thank Chanyeol's parents for their hospitality in ten minutes flat, but now, seating in the passenger seat of Minseok's car, there wasn't much he could do to make the two-hour drive to Seoul go by faster.

"How are you feeling now?"

"Like shit. Like an idiot."

Minseok hummed, "Let the record show I told him it'd be a terrible way to confess. But the boy is a romantic at heart."

"He is, isn't he?"

Baekhyun could barely sit still, thoughts running into one another. He was, on one side, super relieved that Chanyeol hadn't actually been trying to push him to another man, but to himself, if that made any sense. He wanted to get mad, too, but he found he had no energy left. He already knew he had forgiven him for not telling him, and he had loved Chanyeol before this whole mess, and still did, so his heart was set.

There was no way he was revealing his secret, though, so he'd have to find a way to spin his final project to make it interesting even without the surprise ending.

\----

When Minseok parked in front of the bookshop, Baekhyun remembered his thought on the first day of their trip. So much had changed between them. It'd depend in the next ten minutes to see weather it'd been a good change or not, but he was hopeful.

The door chimed when he pushed it open, and even though he couldn't remember ever being that nervous in the shop, the sound managed to settle him. They'd be okay.

Chanyeol sat at the desk, just as he always did. He hadn't noticed Baekhyun yet, eyes fixed on his phone, but Baekhyun had noticed him. He looked like a mess, even worse than he did, and Baekhyun held back a sigh. It wasn't exactly good business practice to show up looking like you hadn’t slept a minute and you'd rather be at home crying.

He dragged his eyes to Sehun's counter, waving at him when he caught his eye and shooing him away. Sehun rolled his eyes, but did as told and when to the lounge room.

It was then that Baekhyun cleared his throat, "Hi."

Chanyeol's head snapped up so fast Baekhyun was sure he could hear it crack. In a moment he'd gotten up, hugging Baekhyun over the desk.

"You're here oh God, I'm so sorry I left you, I've been trying to call you for hours but you wouldn't pick up and I was afraid I wouldn't see you again and now you're here," he babbled, and Baekhyun felt the last of his uncertainty fade just like that. But the desk was digging into his hip and he'd much rather hug Chanyeol once everything was settled, so with a sigh he broke the hug.

Chanyeol winced when he did, running a hand through his hair. He was back to not looking Baekhyun in the eyes, and he just wouldn't have that.

Still, he had to admit it was a little bit awkward. And the only way he could think about to make things less awkward was to ignore the awkwardness. So, he sat himself in his usual chair besides Chanyeol's (he was pleased that it was still there, he'd have to thank Sehun for it) and propped his elbows on the desk.

"So, Minseok told me you are the famous PCY."

"He did what?!"

"Hey, don't take it out on him. I was crying and wanting to kill you, you owe him," Baekhyun chided, patting the desk chair. Chanyeol finally sat beside him, looking sheepish.

"Are you mad at me?"

Baekhyun thought for a moment before answering, "A little bit. But more because you left me that because you didn't tell me. And I have a ton of questions. Like, a proper ton."

Chanyeol smiled, seeming to realize Baekhyun wasn't going to leave any time soon.

"Shoot."

"So, PCY?"

"Yes.'"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Well, at first because I didn't know you, and you don't go around telling your secret identity to everyone. Then because you seemed to love PCY so much I was afraid that just Chanyeol couldn't compete with him. And I didn't want you to like me just because I was PCY."

Baekhyun hummed, "Makes sense. So, the confession?"

"Meant every word," Chanyeol blushed, "though, I do admit now that maybe it wasn't the best way to tell you, but in my defense, things didn't go as planned."

"They didn't? How where they supposed to go?"

"Well, you'd open The Prince of Darkness, read the dedicatory, not freak the fuck up, keep reading, realize that in the first chapter Hwan found the Cristal Cup, and that the scene went exactly like we'd talked about back in March, realize it was me, and hopefully come here and kiss me."

Baekhyun smiled helplessly, taking Chanyeol's hand from where it was lying flat in the desk and basking in the way his fingers immediately tangled with his, "I think it went wrong somewhere about the not freak the fuck up part."

Chanyeol was smiling too, shrugging, "It was a long shot."

"And... the trip?"

Chanyeol's smile fell slightly, "Well, you were really mad at PCY, so I thought you'd get mad at me if I flat out told you, and you seemed really tired so... it seemed like a good idea. You'd get to realize it was me by yourself and hopefully you wouldn't be so mad. Besides, it sounded nice. Travelling together. You meeting my parents and everything."

"It was. Nice, I mean."

"Yeah."

Baekhyun stayed silent for a moment, playing with Chanyeol's fingers. They should always be holding hands.

"One last question. For now," Chanyeol nodded, "You do realize it was you, right? The one I actually loved and the reason I couldn't even think about loving someone else."

Chanyeol's smile was brilliant, worthy of a thousand photographs and paintings and poems, "I hoped so. But, last night... It was a mess. I'm truly sorry I left, but I was freaking out because you were still very mad at PCY and you talked about loving someone else and I thought-"

Baekhyun tightened his hold in his hand, "You thought what?"

"I thought that maybe if you hadn't realized yet it was because you didn't want it to be true. You didn't want PCY to be... me."

And then Baekhyun was out of his chair, arms around Chanyeol's neck and face hiding in his shoulder.

"That's ridiculous. I've told you before that I like you way before PCY even came into the picture. And okay, maybe I haven't fully processed it yet, but you will find out when I do, because I've been compiling a list of questions to ask PCY when I meet him for years, and just because it's you it doesn't mean you're off the rope."

"I'll keep that in mind," Chanyeol whispered against the top of his head, kissing his forehead.

They stayed like that for a while, even if it wasn't the most comfortable position in the world. Baekhyun was glad once again the shop wasn't really frequented.

"So, I have a question too," they both jumped a little, turning to look at Sehun coming back into the room.

"What, Sehun?"

"No, not to you Chanyeol. To the idiot of your boyfriend."

"Hey!" Baekhyun protested, even if he couldn't really get mad after being called Chanyeol's boyfriend.

"You really didn't figure it out until today?"

"I had thought about it, actually. But it didn't make sense! Specially the part about missing me. By the way, when were you missing me?" he asked, facing Chanyeol once again, and surprised to notice him blushing.

"Oh, I think I know the answer to that one!" Sehun piped in, getting to work in a couple of cups of coffee. Baekhyun could really use some coffee right now.

"Please don't," Chanyeol asked him, but his resigned tone made it clear that he was resigned to the fact.

"So, you know how I was hired like two weeks after you left," Baekhyun nodded, patting Chanyeol's head from where it had dropped in his shoulder, "Well, this idiot here would spend his days pining after you and looking at his phone forlornly. I only noticed it was about you because he was suddenly supper happy the moment you crossed the door. It was embarrassing."

"Aww, that's cute. You missed me that much?" he teased.

"Yes, okay?" Chanyeol groaned, "We spent every day together and then you go back to school and we barely see each other! What was I supposed to do?"

Baekhyun already knew they were going to be the most embarrassing couple ever. They'd been embarrassing already, but he sensed that now they were going to get it to a whole other lever.

"That your boyfriend is an idiot doesn't mean that you aren't one too. I mean did you at least notice that Chanyeol's the one who owns this place?"

Baekhyun gaped. "You do?!"

"How did you think you got this job? Your coffee sucked and you can't even boil water properly. Plus, you had cero experience."

When Sehun put it that way, it didn't make much sense, "I thought the big boss was charmed by the great picture I attached to the resume."

"He was. Very much. But he'd liked the real thing better."

"Oh God, you're gonna be so gross."

Baekhyun shrugged, "Hopefully."

\----

“Are you sure you wanna do this?”

“I am, Baek.”

“We can totally turn back, you know. I won’t hold it against you or anything.”

Chanyeol tightened the hold he had on his hand, “I know. But we’ve been talking about it for months, and we’re ready.”

Baekhyun nodded, fixing his eyes back on the screen. Taking a deep breath, he pressed send. It was done.

In less than an hour, everyone would know the identity of PCY.

Things had been going great for a long time. Chanyeol had published new book, part of a new upcoming saga. It had sold out in 48 hours. Baekhyun had graduated College and was now working at a small but promising paper.

And they were happy. They didn’t need to tell the world who PCY was to shake up the bubble of safety their relationship had become. But still, it felt like the right time.

“Things are going to change, you know.”

Chanyeol nodded, “I do. But we’ll be fine, don’t you think? Good things came out the last time everything changed.”

Baekhyun nodded back, taking his hand. And, with that, they waited.


End file.
